


Hook, Line, and Sinker

by the_only_iris



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cop Naruto, F/M, Fluff, Hints of KibaHina, Hints of narusaku, Marijuana, References to Drugs, Sasuke is a spoilt brat, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:29:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25129318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_only_iris/pseuds/the_only_iris
Summary: Naruto had been raised with love and respect, but ended up growing into become an awkward adult. These days, who wasn't an awkward adult? Reeling from the end of his relationship, Naruto stumbles upon an intoxicated college student, which invariably reminds him of everything he's never had, and goes on to give him so much more than he had originally planned.[Cop! Naruto x College student! Reader]
Relationships: Uzumaki Naruto/Reader
Comments: 5
Kudos: 63





	Hook, Line, and Sinker

**Author's Note:**

> I'm obviously not a NaruHina stan so

The thing about night shifts was the ridiculous yearning for a partnership that swarmed his being each time he patrolled the area. For someone like Naruto, being existential was like a part of who he was—channeling himself to be someone better than he used to be, someone that he wasn't before, someone better, better, better.

Why he wanted to be better was the age-old question; he had been raised by two of the best people he knew, probably the best people in the world for all he cared, and he just wanted them to appreciate the person he was despite knowing that any path he took, Minato and Kushina, his loving parents, would respect him for. There weren't a lot of things Naruto lacked in his life, but when he was the way he was, existential and overthinking his nuts off, disappointment and dashing hopes were not far away. He had dreamed to become a police officer in his last year at school, and despite passing and clearing the exam and training, there was a sense of dread that merely grew as each day passed.

Perhaps, it had a lot to do with Hinata, he doesn't really know.

As his best friend Sakura had once told him, he was the happiest person a lot of people knew. Sakura was admirable because she was honest to his face despite how people walked around him on eggshells, praising him for his father's success. She was someone who raised herself from ground-up and having yearned after her for so long, she lodged herself a place in his heart and wasn't ever going to go away. Perhaps, that sort of admiration wasn't substantially accepted by romantic interests all over; maybe, that's why Hinata did what Hinata did. 

Now with his thoughts flying everywhere, the blond almost didn't notice suffocating giggling coming from his left, an alleyway which breathed and smelled like criminal activities. Maybe, after being on this patrol route for three weeks, he'd finally find something that he could report and have his FTO praise him for actually doing something. He was given the worst possible shift, 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., after which the shift would be taken over by one of his old classmates from middle school, Kiba. Now, seeing Kiba every day caused some sort of twist in the blond's stomach because Kiba was best friends with his ex-girlfriend. Konoha, as a city and a place to live in, was incredibly small indeed.

Focusing on the muffled giggles, Naruto grazed his hand over the taser that was given to him and moved to the side, not wanting the perpetrators or whoever it was that was giggling like a moron at, he checked the time, 12:42 a.m. Moving softly so as to not have them run for it, he noticed a lone shadow at the corner of the alley, which connected to the other street. 

It was where Naruto first saw you. 

He blinked a couple of times before taking a good look at your appearance. You were wearing a hoodie, probably that of Konoha University, for the town's leaf symbol was printed rather alarmingly on your back. Your jeans were slightly muddy, meaning you might have fallen down or something; and your hair was tied to a bun, which instantly reminded him of his ex-girlfriend because she looked awfully good with her hair pushed up—shaking thoughts of Hinata out of his mind, he approached you, your back facing him, and your giggles now were the only thing resonating in his mind.

"Uh," He cleared his throat softly so as to not scare you, "Ma'am?"

You turned around and your intoxicated eyes immediately widened, "Oh _shit_."

That wasn't a very welcome response to seeing a cop, he wasn't used to it, but he had heard from some of his seniors that people weren't generally fond of cops. He gulped before tilting his head a bit, easing on the grasp over his taser. You seemed pretty harmless. Maybe, you were just drunk and needed to get home.

"Do you need any help?"

"Nope," The 'p' popping at the end of your denial made him want to laugh at you, "I'm fine, officer!"

"It's okay, I can walk you home. It's awfully late." 

Your face was flushed dangerously, and you looked completely out of it. He wondered how you got there, but questions could be asked later, he supposed. He moved forward to take a soft hold of your hand, just so that you wouldn't wobble and fall over, but you took two steps back. It was then he noticed that your pockets were filled with something. He eyed your pockets suspiciously before turning to look at you.

"Ma'am, what's that in your pockets?"

Your eyes widened almost comically, " _Shit_ ," You whispered before shaking your head, "It's definitely nothing that concerns you."

 _Yeah, right_ , "Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to take out whatever is in your pockets, slowly."

"Listen," You suddenly tried to sound incredibly sober, "It's not even mine, alright?" You hiccuped before continuing, "It belongs to someone else, it's not mine."

"That's what everyone says—"

"No! Seriously," You pleaded, "It's not mine. It's not."

His ex-girlfriend was the one who told him he was too nice to be a cop. His eyes softened on your form, and he didn't know what came over him. Letting out a sigh, he brushed his hand through his hair before noticing how desperate you looked. 

"Let me take you home and I'll let this go."

You let out a shaky breath, "That really isn't such a good idea, officer."

"I can't just let you go! You're drunk out of your mind and you carry drugs with you—"

"I wouldn't call marijuana a drug, exactly—"

"Please, for the love of God, don't correct me while I'm definitely sure I'm making a mistake, okay?"

He didn't understand why you giggled after that. His stomach flipped at the thought of breaking the roles despite being a police officer, but what no one knew wouldn't hurt anyone right? _Maybe, this is how criminals think_ , he gulped, before wondering if Sasuke had thought the same. 

"Promise you won't be alarmed at what you see?"

His eyes widened at your request. _What the fuck?_ He wanted to scream but all he could imagine was how his one mistake was merely escalating into finding something bigger. He was a cop, he was going to think and behave like one. And even if you were drunk and being cute if you carried drugs at home or worse, grew marijuana in a secret room, he'd have to take you in. He nodded, though, and grabbed your arm before you fell. You told him your address and he was aware of where it was, not too far from where you stood. 

"Where are you coming from?" Naruto asked, walking beside you. The smell of intoxication radiating off of you itched his nose; but, he was being a gentleman and he wouldn't call you out for smelling like whiskey.

"Boyfriend's," You almost winced at your own words, " _Ex_ -boyfriend's."

Naruto looked at you from the corner of his eye and blinked away, not wanting to comment further. Clearly, your drunkenness now had a reason; not that he'd say it was justified. His relationship ended not too long ago and he didn't resort to drinking even once. _That's only because Sakura slapped the sense into me_ , he thought, the image of an angry Sakura was enough to send shivers down his spine.

"What... happened?" Naruto asked, not sure if he could.

You merely hummed before pointing to a building and exclaiming, "That's the house!" You turned to him and handed him the bag that was in your pocket. Naruto froze before his eyes widened, the newspaper roll in his hand was the closest he had ever come to touching pot. He turned to look at you, now smiling at him and looking adorable and he wanted to scream at you.

"Uh, what's this?"

"That's my bargaining chip," You said, "In case you think I might make you think I'd run away."

"You're drunk as fuck," He chuckled as he said it, "But, okay. Let's go."

Naruto grabbed onto the newspaper roll, quelling the urge to dispel it in the nearby trash. You led him to the building that you had pointed to earlier, which looked like a series of flats; room 203 was yours. You let out a breath before turning to him with cautious eyes and he merely waited. You sighed as you opened the door, revealing a room filled with smoke and colorful lights that were blinding anyone who wasn't used to such a sight. Naruto smelled cigarettes in the air, and he shut his eyes fearing an epilepsy attack. _What the fuck is going on?_ He thought before immediately thinking of Sasuke, the only one who might be familiar with stuff like this. 

"I told you that it's... Yeah." He heard you scream because the music was blaring into his ears.

There were two other people who didn't even notice Naruto enter the room. Quickly heading to the corner, you turned off the stream lights and switched on a bright white light gave Naruto every chance to reel and run away from where he stood. There on the ground was crushed marijuana, bottles of alcohol all lying around, and several cigarette packets having been thrown everywhere. It was then the two others spotted Naruto, before standing up and screaming. Naruto stood there, pushing his hands forward and asking them to calm down, wishing he had a gun so he could, like, shoot the air or something.

"(y/n)! What the fuck?!"

"Yeah, (y/n)! You brought a cop home!"

"What the fuck—"

"Listen, nimrods," You slurred, a nasty frown on your face, "Your friend and I are done. Nothing left. Zilch. Nada."

The boys who were sitting in the middle of your living room looked petrified. Naruto looked at you like he was watching a movie. _What is going on?_ You made a swish effect with your hand before pointing to the door.

"I will no l-l-longer be requiring your c-company," The slurring just increased, "So get out of my apartment!"

Ah, so they were friends with your ex? And they had taken over your flat for their recreational purposes? Did that mean you didn't involve yourself with such activities? Naruto didn't know why he felt suddenly glad, but he felt a bit bad for your predicament. It must be hard being a college student, he thought before watching how the boys scrambled to their feet. They gathered their cigarette packs and just as they were about to grab the pot, Naruto stomped his foot right next to it, freezing them in place.

Grinning he said, "Leave it."

It took them a total of two minutes to scram. And after that, when he looked over to you, your eyes suddenly filled with tears at the sudden emptiness of your apartment, he wanted to go over to you and reassure you that the steps you had taken were indeed the right ones. But before he could do any of that, your eyes rolled over your head and you collapsed. 

"Holy shit," Naruto gasped before rushing over to you and checked for a pulse. You were definitely alive, and he deduced that it was the alcohol that had brought your sudden slumber, "Fuck me."

Picking you up and throwing you on the couch nearby, Naruto let out many shaky breaths before realizing the incoming panic that was due any second. Scrambling to reach his phone, he dialed the one person he knew who could calm him down. Sakura picked up in just three rings, knowing full well that she must have been studying. 

"Naruto? What's up? Why are you calling me at this hour?"

"Sakura-chan," He was biting his nails now, "I think I fucked up."

Elaborating what had happened only made Sakura laugh at his predicament. While his heart was hammering against his chest for an apparent crime that he had done, learning that Sakura thought this whole ordeal was funny somewhat aggravated him. 

"Your laughing does not help in any way—"

"Relax. She's asleep, right?"

He nodded. A second later he realized that Sakura couldn't see him nodded so he affirmed it with a soft 'yes'. 

"Then it's fine. Get out of there, and leave her alone. College students always smoke up. I don't see why you're fretting."

"Firstly, I'm a cop. And, I never went to college, you know that." Naruto pouted before turning to leave. A second later, he turned to spot you, now noticing how puffy your eyes looked when closed. _She just broke up with someone_ , he thought almost kindly before a certain black-haired woman's face shot in his mind, and a moment later he realized he'd been ignoring Sakura's words.

"Naruto, where'd you go?"

"Sorry," He closed the door behind him, "I was leaving the apartment. What were you saying?"

"Not going to college is okay if you know what you want to do. You're going to make a great cop. Stop worrying."

"Thanks, Sakura-chan," His heart felt relatively calm at the sound of her voice, "Hey so, the offer still stands right?"

Sakura giggled, "Yes, Uzumaki. When we're forty and if we're still single, we'll get married. Relax, okay?"

"The girl. She was drunk out of her mind. I think I know why," Sakura paused, knowing Naruto would continue, "She broke up with someone."

"It's typical college stuff. Don't break your head over something like that. Relationships, drugs, missing classes, mistakes—these are just starter packs."

"I'm glad I didn't go to college." He murmured, before returning to his patrol.

* * *

  
The next time Naruto saw you, it was during a little before his shift. Rushing out to meet his friend Sasuke, Naruto spotted you in the very same restaurant, eating ramen. There was someone in front of you, but it didn't look like you were paying them any mind. Sasuke snapped his fingers in front of the blond's face before cocking an eyebrow at him.

"Why are you staring at that girl?"

"What's it to you?" Naruto fought back, "I don't think she'll remember me."

Sasuke's eyes widened dramatically, "Didn't know the memories of your past life returned to you, Naruto-sama. Tell me, was she your hand-maiden?"

He kicked the black-haired male under the table, earning a misplaced chuckle. Naruto shook his head before wondering if telling him would be the right thing to do. Instead, he chose to just ignore it.

"How's college prep coming?"

Sasuke shrugged, "Same old, same old. It's getting a bit hard to just take it easy now that they know my best friend's a fucking cop."

"What do you mean by 'take it easy'?" Naruto asked, frowning.

"You know."

Naruto pressed on with just glaring at the man in front of him. Sasuke knew right away with the intensity of such a glare that Naruto had no idea what it meant.

"It's pot, Naruto. Pot and drinks. People don't sell to me or even claim to have it now that they know you're a cop."

"I'm not even surprised that you do drugs, you're a moron—"

"Of course, an idiot like you would think it's drugs."

"That's what she said."

Sasuke blinked, "That's not even sexual, dumbass."

Naruto shook his head, "No, no. That's what _she_ —," Naruto pointed to you, who was still busy eating ramen, "—said. My patrol last week. She was drunk out of her mind and she had pot in her pocket. She claimed that it wasn't hers—"

"A complete lie—"

"And she said that marijuana isn't technically a drug."

Sasuke nodded, "Because it's not. It's legal in Kumogakure. Konoha is fucking backward—"

"Hey."

"Right, right. But, it's not unusual for college students to do such shit. Go ask your parents, I'm sure they've done it. Hell," Sasuke smirked, "Itachi's done it."

Naruto's eyes widened, "What the fuck?"

Sasuke nodded, "Yeah, med school is a fucking drag."

"I wonder if Sakura's done it?"

Sasuke shook his head, "Nah. She doesn't need pot."

"What does that mean, Sasuke-teme?"

"It means you're a fucking idiot and that girl's coming here."

Naruto didn't even have a second to get ready and suddenly a hand was placed on his shoulder and he turned to spot you—sober faced and rather stoic, your lips were painfully red and your eyes were leaking tears. How spicy was that ramen? He thought before gulping and standing up, towering over you. You let out several breaths before shooting Sasuke a look, and then turning back to Naruto.

"Can we talk, officer?"

The word slipped out of your mouth almost venomously, and he nodded before wondering what this was about. If you wanted to live a life away from pot and drugs in particular, you'd never have tried to remind yourself of that night and come to him to clear the air. What air was there to clear anyway? And it was strange how you had noticed him, despite never once meeting his eye. Maybe, you were just good at looking at people when they didn't look at you.

When you reached outside the restaurant, Naruto checked his watch. He still had an hour left before his shift began. He could afford this conversation.

"So, firstly, I'm sorry," You began, folding your hands in front of your chest, "About that night. And I wanted to tell you that those two boys and I will never cross paths again, hopefully, and all the ganja left over at my house has been successfully discarded and I will never allow myself to go ten-feet close to alcohol."

Naruto smiled at your apparent honesty, "Okay."

You blinked at him as if he was an idiot. You knew that he didn't seem like a rude officer, but just saying 'okay' despite possessing drugs? What was he doing? 

"Uh, okay?"

Naruto nodded, "Okay."

You opened your mouth so as to say something and you quickly narrowed your eyes, "See, they were my ex's friends and they'd come over a lot and I was going through a tough time and they started to—"

"You don't have to explain, (y/n)-san."

Your eye quickly darted to Naruto's nameplate before clearing your throat, "I... I didn't think I gave you my name, Uzumaki-san."

"Yeah, they were pretty alarmed you brought a cop home."

"No shit," You cussed under your breath, "For what it's worth, I'm glad that night occurred or I'd have taken longer to throw them out. A drunken stupor and affirmative text messages the next morning sure do the trick!"

Naruto laughed. "I hope you're okay, though."

"I will be," You smiled before tilting your head, "You're a really good guy, Uzumaki-san. Thank you for forgiving a broke college student's mistakes."

_It's typical college stuff. Don't break your head over something like that. Relationships, drugs, missing classes, mistakes—these are just starter packs._

"Don't worry about it."

He knew he wasn't supposed to be doing this, but it seemed alright. You approached him to apologize for something that wasn't really your fault. Now that things were cleared, Naruto turned to spot Sasuke there, eating the rest of his dinner. Letting out a breath, he returned to his friend to speak of a more pressing issue.

"Did I tell you about Hinata and—"

"What was that about?" Sasuke asked, looking straight into Naruto's eye.

A chill went down Naruto's back at the way Sasuke questioned him. Shooting his friend a nasty glare, Naruto shook his head in disgust.

"You almost sounded like her, Sasuke-teme. Don't ever question me like that again. Cheap bastard."  
  
Sasuke only laughed.

* * *

  
The next time he saw you, it was during his patrol. You were walking from the opposite direction and he spotted you from afar. Chuckling, he raised his hand and waved at you before noticing you do the same. You walked over to him, a soft smile on your face. You looked like you were having a tough time, something that Naruto was actually good at deciphering after having an emotionally stunted man for a best friend all his life.

"Uzumaki-san, this your patrol area?"

He merely nodded, drinking in your appearance. You were wearing casual shorts and you held a bag of two ice-cream tubs. Your hair was down today and that oddly made you cuter. His face reddened at the thought he had, but cleared his throat and pushed the thoughts away.

"It's late for you to be out."

"Maybe I was hoping I'd run into a certain cute police officer to escort me home?" You flirted, tilting your head.

He blushed before thinking of various ways to counter it, but he realized he'd taken too much time. You just laughed at how adorable he was before shaking your head.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist!" Naruto was still blushing, "You just walked into that one."

"Didn't realize that flirting was addictive."

"You should try it." You said, again, suggestively, before breaking out into a laugh at how flustered even that made him.

"My best friend always tells me I'm a bad flirt," Naruto said, chuckling, "Didn't agree with her but now I see it."

"Whoever she is, she knows what she's talking about."

Silence followed after what you said, and you just stood there. A second later, Naruto figured your ice cream must be melting.

"Your ice cream—"

"I still haven't thanked you for your help the other day. Want to share?"

He knew that while your offer was innocent, stepping into a sober woman's home after it was 12:30 a.m. wasn't morally the right thing to do. Naruto smiled before offering you a look that suggested that it wouldn't be a great idea, before you shrugged and whined, knowing clearly that whatever was on his mind was something you didn't agree with.

"Come on," You suggested, "It's just ice cream!"

"I'm in between my patrol."

"Consider it as a payment and I'll be out of your hair, I promise."

Naruto took a deep breath before groaning and leaning his head backward. _What am I doing?_ He shut his eyes and followed behind you, offering you a smile of defeat. You pumped your fist in the air before leading the way, but the back of your mind had an inkling that he knew the way too. He noticed that you appeared a lot more cheerful after having met him, which must be a common response to feeling lonely. She broke up, after all; he put his hands behind his back before following after you, knowing full well that he was ignoring his duties. On reaching your house, he was marveled at how neat it looked compared to the last time he had seen it. A smile adorned his lips and you turned around and caught him with it.

"Were you expecting a dumpster?" 

Naruto scoffed, "Do you even recall how it was the last time?"

You nodded, letting out a giggle, "Oh, yeah. I can't believe I lived through that."

"It's okay," Naruto said, almost too casually, "We're never ourselves when we're in a relationship."

It sounded too profound; he almost didn't sound like himself. For a second, he felt as if his soul had slipped out of his body and in came in someone like Sai or Sasuke, who were far more experienced when it came to the throes of romance. You shot him a look before an evil look sat on your face, folding your arms at his apparent advice. Naruto gulped before frowning and looking at your ice-cream and pointing to it. As you took out the ice-cream, he wanted to run away.

"V-Vegan?"

"Do not say anything or I will go to prison for having murdered a cop."

Naruto looked at you with wide eyes before you decided to correct him, "I'm lactose intolerant and I love ice-cream. Sue me."

He gulped before studying the box of vegan flavored mint-chocolate ice-cream, "I've never really had vegan ice-cream before. I'm not exactly skeptical, but I thought it was the lactose that made ice-cream taste nice."

"Trust me," You huffed, "It's the sugar."

Naruto sat across you on the couch and you made yourself comfortable after offering him the rub and a spoon. He looked at the tub and then at you before plastering a question mark on his face. You laughed at how adorable he looked before gesturing him to eat through the tub directly.

"Have you never done that?"

Naruto chuckled, "Mom would kill me. Dad and I would do it in secret, but if she found out, _yeesh_ —" He made a gesture of swiping a hand below his neck, which caused you to giggle, "You do not want to see my mom angry."

"Coming back to more important things," You stabbed your spoon on to the ice cream and gulped your first scoop, "We're never ourselves when we're in a relationship, huh?"

Naruto blushed at the reminder, before stabbing his own spoon in the tub given to him. He silently ate one scoop and decided that the taste wasn't so bad, in fact, he couldn't really tell it apart. Sakura did tell him his taste pallet was trash, so that could have been a factor.

"Come on," You urged, eating another spoon, "We're practically strangers."

"Which should be a reason why I shouldn't tell you, right?"

"It should make it easier for you to unload, actually."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "I don't particularly like oversharing, even though I do it all the time."

"Oh? Do you overshare? Guess what I do?" Naruto blinked at you, "I over _listen_."

He laughed at how stupid you sounded before noticing how keen your gaze was on him. You didn't have to urge him any longer, in fact, nothing needed to be said if you have eyes. Yours were dead set on his form, and he wondered why that was or if your gaze was just generally powerful. It reminded him of Sakura, in a way.

"I... I had a girlfriend," Naruto began, face heating up, "Hinata Hyuga. Absolute... absolute bomb of a woman."

"What happened?"

"Eh?"

You shrugged, "Usually bomb women have a lot attached to them. Pride, insecurity."

Naruto raised his eyebrows at you, "Are you sure you're a college student?"

You laughed at him before urging him to continue. 

"Yeah so, ah," He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling suddenly all too conscious, "This is going to take a while. It's close to 1 a.m. Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I'm a law student, I know no such thing as sleep." You said, smirking.

"You're a law student and you had friends who smoke pot?"

"I'm still a college student, Uzumaki-san, give me some credit."

Naruto laughed, "Alright, alright. So..." You nodded, encouraging him, "I was in love with my current best friend back in school. Sakura-chan. She's a final year med student right now, she's just everything that anyone would ever dream of becoming. Fucking Class A Queen. Love her to bits. So it was natural that I had feelings for her as a kid."

"I have feelings for her now with the way you're talking about her. Continue."

Naruto chuckled, "So, I sort of... Well, I never explicitly told Sakura-chan that I liked her? But, she knew and we had a weird... talk of sorts and we remained friends, which only got better with time and we're as close as ever. She's dated people, and I... I was confessed to by this really, really amazing woman, Hinata, and we started going out and—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Naruto's eyes widened, "She confessed to you?"

Naruto nodded. 

"And you started going out?"

Naruto nodded once more, a bit confused.

"Did you even like her?"

Ah, Naruto bit his lip, "So... That's the thing. I thought she was cute, and I did tell her I never knew she had feelings for me so it might take some time for me to like her _like her_ —" You snickered at his choice of words. He was adorable. "—and the whole school practically knew I had a thing for Sakura-chan, so she knew too. We were high school seniors when we started dating and by the end of our third month together, I thought Hinata was pretty cool. I did like her. And man, the start of our relationship was just amazing,"

You smiled at him as he continued, "After we graduated, things got a bit weird. I didn't go to college like her, I became a cop. It was my dream, and when I cleared the exam and got selected as a rookie... We..." Naruto remembered the fight to its exact detail.

_He rushed over to the Hyuga compound and greeted Hanabi near the koi pond. He always liked Hanabi, she was a sweet kid. Rushing to see Hinata inside, Naruto greeted his girlfriend with the warmest of hugs. Hinata froze, which seemed a bit odd for him at first but didn't pay it too much thought._

_"Hinata, I got in! I'm a cop now—"_

_"Naruto-kun," She held an envelope in her hands, "I got in too."_

_Naruto blinked before feeling his heart sink. Oh. Oh, damn. His eyes scanned the surface of the envelope before meeting her eyes and feeling his heart sink. He tried to smile after that, wanting to cheer her up if she was having cold feet._

_"Come on, why so glum? It's great—"_

_"Is it? Is it great for us?" She asked, and he almost winced at how cold her words her._

_"What do you mean—"_

_"I got into Suna's school for sciences, and that's 1000 miles away," She was frowning now, "And you'll be here. In Konoha. With Sakura."_

_He felt something prick his heart right then at the way Hinata said Sakura's name. Sakura was a part of his life, he would never think of her as a bane for anything Naruto held dear. And to see Hinata talk of his best friend like she was a hurdle hurt him._

_"What are you saying? She's my best friend—"_

_"Will she still be your best friend if I'm not around, Naruto-kun? I've seen the way you look at her. I've seen the way you've always looked at her!"_

_"Hinata," He placed his arms on both her shoulders, "Don't say that! I don't think of her that way, I love you—"_

_"You took almost six months in our relationship to tell me that, while I told you in the first damn month, Naruto-kun. I feel like a fool—"_

_"That's because I never knew how you felt about me! You can't blame me for not liking you in the beginning, Hinata. I didn't want to lie to you—"_

_"Maybe you should have. Because I can't stand being second place."_

_Naruto let out a breath, feeling his heart race, "You're not second place. You're my girl, you're—"_

_"If you say so," Hinata said, now sporting an emotionless expression, "If I'm your girl, then promise me something."_

_"Anything."_

_"Cut ties with Sakura."_

_What Hinata said honestly didn't hurt him as much right then. He stared at her face disbelievingly, unable to comprehend the words that fell out of her mouth. However, at the same time, it wasn't unbecoming for her to say them. It wasn't out of character for Hinata to feel less compared to Sakura, for he had always known there was some insecurity nestled there. His mother had long told him something that screamed inside his ear right then. She told him, 'Betrayal destroys trust. The more trust there is, to begin with, the more damage is done.' Naruto felt strangely hollow when he realized that there was suddenly no love lost as he let out a shaky breath. Oh, he did love Hinata. He loved her silky smooth hair and her shy personality; he loved how shy she was every morning after, and he loved the touch of her skin against his._

_But, he loved Sakura more._

Your eyes widened as he told you exactly what had happened, and suddenly, you felt like reaching over to the man and just giving him a hug. Based on no evidence, you believed his words of an experience only came up because he had been the one broken up with, but turns out, Naruto was a man of principle. He chose his best friend over a girl, and that had ultimately made him someone you could admire. 

"That's..." 

Naruto whistled before nodding and chuckling at your expression, "Sakura obviously knows. There's nothing I don't tell her."

"I'm actually impressed, Uzumaki-san. That's quite bold of you."

He shrugged, "She called me an idiot, but she understood. I'm glad she didn't walk over and slap Hinata or something. Sakura-chan was all about how relationships shouldn't give us ultimatums." 

You nodded, "I agree," It was Naruto's turn to look at you, as he took another spoonful of ice-cream, "She had no right to make you choose between your friend and her. That's spiteful."

"Ah, well. Things happen. People move on." _She's definitely fucking Kiba, and I'm here eating vegan ice-cream with a girl who doesn't know my first name_.

"My ex was toxic," You said after a moment, "He tried to control my every move. Don't wear that, don't wear this. Don't drink. Don't speak to them. Got tired of it, frankly. But, I guess it took me that long since... At some point, I just hate being alone."

Suddenly, Naruto was alone during a patrol in the middle of the night. The raging loneliness bubbled in his chest and had him feeling almost breathless at how handicapped it made him feel; he wanted to be more satisfied with himself, the way Sakura was, but he was crippled. He had gotten used to Hinata's texts, with her constantly asking him what he was doing, texting him every single hour. Somewhere down the line, he had gotten used to her, and even if there was no love there, he missed the companionship. Suddenly, he spotted you—going through the same thing, suffocating against another human being's incompetencies because your own seem to be relentlessly telling you it's terrible being lonely. It wasn't a revelation, but he felt it; he felt how lonely you felt, and that was comforting.

"If there's something my night walks tell me," Naruto sighed, placing the lid over the ice-cream tub and placing it back on the table. "It's that no matter where we go, we're going to be alone."

"That's rather pessimistic, Uzumaki-san."

He shook his head, "I think it's better if we look at it like this. We're going to feel lonely, and one day, we're not. And the wait may be worth it, it may not be. Yet, we hope. Despite all odds, we hope."

Your eyes widened at his words. Instead of retorting, you merely smiled and averted your gaze from him. All of a sudden, in the middle of the night, this random police officer had ended up making a lot of sense. It was nice.

"It's Naruto, by the way."

You giggled before saying, "Nice name, Naruto-san."

_Right back at you, (y/n)-chan._

* * *

  
Konoha's relatively low crime rate made it easier for Naruto to interact with you, a rather sleep-deprived law student. Almost every night, you'd greet him as he walked by his patrols and you'd even accompany him for a distance till he tells you to go get some sleep. Some nights, when you had assignments and work to do, you'd be absent, and you'd inform him of said absence early on. It had become a rather casual thing for both of you, ever since you discovered each other's weaknesses.

Both you and Naruto hated being by yourselves. 

What began as a constant reminder was now being fed by your hyperactive assurances. He had learned that you were just a year younger than him, which made him feel a bit odd considering he had never really taken your age into account while interacting with you. He'd learned that you were indecisive, headstrong where you needed to be, and the exact opposite of shy. You were nothing like Hinata and while he punished himself for even trying to compare the both of you, his mind had already declared the difference like it was clear as day. The more he spoke to you, the more familiar you became; as anyone would. It was just one to two hours every night, and Naruto found himself looking forward to seeing you, day in and day out. You had started to grow on him like a weed, but it was strange how fluidic conversations were with you. He recalled how he'd have to constantly monitor his words with Hinata, how often he had to avoid talking about Sakura to her, but with you, it felt as if he could literally say anything and you would just listen.

The night you exchanged numbers with him, things started to appear a bit more clearly. Naruto noticed that your eyes were no longer puffy, your smile reached your ears a lot more effortlessly than before, and your skin was practically glowing. He understood that you had the habit of forgetting to drink water, and he had told you to remind yourself, to which you jokingly responded that you weren't drinking water because he wasn't around to remind you.

_"What's your phone number?"_

_You paused in between your walk and stared at him. Naruto being Naruto failed to notice the growing blush on your face, and simply acted as if he would normally act. Despite being flustered, your confidence refused to turn you into mush._

_"Is that your way of flirting with me, officer?"_

_Naruto chuckled, "We've already established that I'm no good, (y/n)-chan. Give me your number."_

_You twirled on your feet before walking ahead of him, your hands behind your back. You were grinning at him like you knew something he didn't, and Naruto's adorably bashful smile made you want to scream. You contained yourself well, though._

_"Maybe I can teach you."_

_"(y/n)-chan," He almost scolded, "Come on."_

_You gave him your number and Naruto instantly rang you, giving you his. You saved his number as 'officer' with a heart and showed it to him, only to have your smile be wiped out of your face when he showed you the name he had given you. Your expression turned into a deadpan and you groaned._

_"Really? That's why you wanted my number?" You complained, "Remind her to drink water? How is that even a good contact name?"_

_Naruto laughed heartily at your complaints before noticing the pout on your face. Neither of the two of you realized it, but right then, you had cured each other's growing loneliness. It had been rather obvious otherwise, but right then, at that very instance, both of you were healed._

_You sighed before walking beside him now, shoulder touching shoulder, and hands dangerously close to his, faces red and content, hearts full._

_"I look forward to your reminder, officer."_

_"Will do my best, ma'am."_

So when your skin was glowing right then, Naruto held back a smile. It was obvious to him now that he admired you, that these walks left him yearning but simultaneously if you weren't around, he wasn't terribly lost. Without Hinata, some part of Naruto had always felt crippled, but that had just been her overbearing presence having clipped his wings. With you, there was no need to be dependent. With you, it was just free-form sways. He felt even the smallest measurable unit of human connection around you and recalled basic things and felt them deeply; the sort of exchanges that were typically exchanged between passing strangers—a flirtatious glance, a sympathetic nod, a shared laugh about some odd coincidence—moments that are fleeting and random but still contain powerful emotional nutrients that can alleviate the symptoms of feeling alone. 

His father had taught him how to fish when he was a child, and although it was an activity he greatly despised, Naruto recalled how accurately his father had described one of the loudest jargons he had ever heard. While often confused that the metaphor meant being deceived far too easily, Naruto understood it a tad bit differently thanks to his father. 'You attach the hook, line, and sinker to the fishing rod,' he'd told him, 'and then the fish gulps it all down, completely, and gets stuck. Because of that, we can either choose to use the fish for sustenance or throw it back inside.'

'What a dumb fish,' seven-year-old Naruto had said, mockingly.

Minato placed a loving hand on his son's head before ruffling his hair, 'It's not that the fish is dumb, Naruto,' Minato's eyes were an extraordinary blue that day, 'It's that it trusts what it sees, wholeheartedly. When being deceived, its final thoughts are centered around how it desperately believes what it sees is the truth'. 

And while he knew that using the metaphor here would only indicate that he was being an idiot, Naruto couldn't help but feel like the fish around you. His blue eyes fell on your form as you narrated one part of your day, hands gesturing all around you as you explained some hidden detail that you had noticed; and boy, he had never been that enamored by these small intricate signs that you were getting healthier. And because of that, so was he.

However, a lower crime rate in Konoha did not mean an absence of crime. As you were talking, Naruto's eyes fell on the shadow that loomed to your left, and his eyes widened as it got closer. In one instant, he rushed forward, grabbing you and throwing you toward his back, before pushing the assailant to the ground. In one look, Naruto could tell that it was a desperate man making a mistake, but that didn't stop him from tasing him and pinning him to the ground. 

"Naruto—"

"Are you all right?" He turned to look at you over his shoulder and you nodded, shock still keeping you frozen to the spot.

The grip with which Naruto had pulled you aside stung, but that was what had saved you from who knows what. Your breath was a bit shaky, but Naruto had saved you. Placing a kind yet shaky hand on his shoulder, you nodded once before rushing away, knowing that you had to let him do his job. He clicked on his microphone before asking if anyone was around, and your heart was still beating quite heavily. You bit your lip before feeling gratitude flood your system, and you typed a text message to 'naruto <3'. 

_Thank you. I don't know what I'd have done._

You deliberated on sending a heart, but chose against it. 

The next time you saw Naruto was before his shift when he was with two other people. There was a rather handsome man with black hair and black eyes, his hair disheveled, however, and his sweatshirt had a coffee stain on it, which was rather prominent. Beside Naruto sat a pink-haired woman, easily one of the most beautiful women you had ever laid eyes on, and you knew right away that it was Sakura-chan from his stories. You smiled to yourself before leaving them to their own and headed over to the ramen store before ordering your blues special. It had been quite a while before you saw him, a looming 12-days to be precise. There were on-and-off messages that he left you, reminding you to drink water, which you started to ignore. The reason you had a blues special was simple; whenever you were having a hard time, you'd take your mind off of it by eating something so extraordinarily spicy that you couldn't think of anything except the fact that your tongue was burning. 

What was it that you were currently stressing about? 

Your assignment didn't go too well; you had chosen to hang out with Naruto on one of his walks while deliberately choosing to ignore your assignment's deadline. You know what he'd say if he found out, and keeping it a secret only made you feel worse. While you were mighty comfortable throwing these emotions under a rug, a part of you knew that it would simply come back and bite you in the ass one day; and that day was today.

Just as the ramen arrived, you felt eyes on you. You knew Naruto had spotted you, and his friends had as well, but you were not going to waver. You were beating yourself up for choosing a boy over your studies, just as you had done before in the past while forgetting the primary thing that had you focused. You loved studying law, you wanted to get good scores and graduate, but your mind wavered and it was just difficult with all your racing thoughts, and emotions. Leaving them unchecked brings us back to your current breakdown. You slurped the noodles before instantly feeling it burn your tongue and invariably going on to burn your throat. You closed your eyes tightly before choosing to ignore it and continued eating. 

"What's wrong with her? I thought I was having a bad day." Sasuke said, not able to pry his eyes off you.

Naruto felt his stomach being gouged out. Sakura noticed the sudden quietness that had loomed over her friend and only sighed.

"Naruto, why don't you go talk to her?"

"Eh? What if she wants to be alone?"

Sakura gave him a look before tilting her head, "I'll deal with our favorite Uchiha baby, now go talk to her. She looks like she's having a hard time."

"I practically failed one of my classes, my dad's a bit of a dick, and I am _not_ an Uchiha baby."

"Says the youngest Uchiha, now shut up and eat." Sakura snapped before forcing Sasuke to eat something.

Naruto chuckled before going over to you, knowing that you knew he had seen you. Sitting opposite you, he watched as you slurped the most devil-like ramen he had ever seen, and cringed at how you just kept going. 

"(y/n)-chan—"

"I need—", slurp, "—to finish—", slurp, "—this."

Naruto nodded before shooting Sakura and Sasuke a look, which they surprisingly understood. They turned away from him before Sakura paid complete attention to the attention-seeking Uchiha. 

"Haven't seen you for a while." Naruto said, recalling the last time he had seen her, which was the attempting mugging night.

As soon as you finished the ramen, you were panting. Naruto's eyes widened at your suddenly deeply red face and he hoped you wouldn't faint or something. He knew Ichiraku's spicy hell special was not for the light-hearted, but seeing you just sit there and take it was a tad bit... arousing. He gulped before handing you water and noticed how you gulped it all down.

"Water really doesn't help." You spoke, sticking your tongue out and Naruto just laughed.

"Ichiraku's a monster."

"That he sure is."

He took a breath before waiting for a minute. He watched carefully how your skin lacked that sheen it normally had, which meant you were drinking less water than usual. His heart broke at the sight of eye-bags, which meant you were pushing yourself harder than usual. Instinctively, Naruto felt a rush he hadn't quite understand where it came from before grabbing your hand and pulling you out of the restaurant, yelling over his shoulder, "Sasuke, pay the bill!"

"I told you my day sucked."

"Sasuke-kun, _please_ , for god's sake."

Knowing that his shift would begin in less than an hour, he needed to hear you out. The closest place was his apartment, which he knew you had never seen before. Taking you there, he fiddled with the keys as you stood by his side, watching his every move. He opened the door and led you inside, and you can immediately smell the room freshener. You narrowed your eyes at how artificial the smell was but then noticed how there was an obvious can of room freshener on the table.

"I don't wash my socks too well, sue me," Naruto grumbled before sitting on the chair, pulling another one for you to sit, "Now spill."

"I chose you over an assignment and I did badly and I've been having second thoughts about myself and the choices I've made and it's getting harder to focus—"

"Wait," Naruto felt his heart rummage in his chest, "What do you mean you chose me?"

You let out a breath and explained. Naruto only listened, before understanding the issue at hand. While it had been so easy for him to admire you in secret, you were beating yourself up over your emotions. He smiled at you before wanting to slap his forehead and leaned back against his chair, surprising you and making you suddenly stop.

"I'm an idiot."

"What, why?"

He shook his head before saying, "Listen, just tell me, alright? I don't like seeing you beat yourself up like this. And honestly," He grimaced, "That ramen isn't even good for you—"

"You're one to talk, smelly-sock...loser." 

"That nickname sucked so hard."

"Oh yeah? It's not as bad as 'remind her to drink water'."

"Never said that was a nickname, my nickname for you would be 'idiot'."

You scoffed, "You are so lame."

"Did you just call an officer lame?"

"What are you going to do about it? Arrest me?" 

He didn't know what came over him. Perhaps, it was a pent-up frustration; perhaps, it was knowing you felt the same for him as he did for you and it was all coming down to who was going to make the first move. And while that was devastatingly poetic in one light, Naruto was as impulsive as impulsive gets. He grabbed the collar of your tee-shirt before pulling you to his lap and kissing you hard; and you froze, just for a second, before running his hands through his hair and gripping him like your life was dependent on entirely that one action. Naruto's hands ran over your hip and snuck into your tee before feeling your skin against his hands, and you pressed the back of his neck and brought him closer. 

Pulling away for breath, you rested your forehead against his and licked your lips. 

"That wasn't you arresting me, though," You whispered, smiling, "Since when have you...?"

"For a while," He breathed, closing his eyes, "Ever since you forced me to tell you about my ex-girlfriend."

"Oh? The _bomb of a woman_?"

"I will never, for the life of me, call her that again,"

You felt his grip tighten around your waist and he said, "Not when there's a _bomb_ on me as we speak."

"Do not ever flirt again, for as long as I live."

"You said the same thing that Sakura-chan said and it hurts my heart, honestly."

A moment later, you noticed him lean his head down and sigh. You pressed your hand to his head and wondered what suddenly went wrong. 

"What—"

"I'm like a fish right now," Naruto said looking up at you, a soft smile on his features, "And you're the rod."

"What?"

"Reeling me in hook, line, and sinker." He muttered to himself and you wouldn't have even heard it if you hadn't paid attention.

A smile adorned your lips as you realized there was no confession, really. You hugged him tightly before getting off his lap and checking the time. It was close to 11 p.m. now. Turning to him, you grinned before pulling him to a standing position.

"Say, Naruto-kun," You wrapped your hands around his waist and noticed a half-lidded smile on his face, "Will you walk me home?"

"Sure, why's that—"

"After I watch you change?"

Pulling away from you, you laughed at how adorably bashful he suddenly got. If you had been lonely before, you couldn't remember what it felt like now. Some part of you told you that Naruto had helped you achieve that hope back. Another part of you told you that you had to give yourself some credit for picking yourself up after breaking up with your ex. But, in all honestly, it was Naruto's mother's words that resonated in your mind. 

_We're going to feel lonely, and one day, we're not. And the wait may be worth it, it may not be. Yet, we hope. Despite all odds, we hope._

Looking at him right then, his back facing you as he took out his uniform, you saw nothing but hope. And what a wonderful feeling that was. 


End file.
